Molding machine



J. C. TEMPLE, SR

MOLDING MACHINE 4 Shee'ts-Sheet 1 Filed July 16, 1946 2 G F 6 m 2 J 0 2 a M I x I 2 F 04 2 3 p z a w a M 7 e a A W W. 6 Wu INVENTOR k JOHN C. TEMPL E 52.

ATTORNEYS Aug. 9, 1949. J. c. TEMPLE, SR

MOLDING MACHINE Filed July 16, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR & E a m M q T w {m C Aug. 9, 1949.

Filed July 16, 1946 J. C. TEMPLE, SR

MOLDING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 l N VE NTO R JOHN CTEMPL E, 5n.

ATTOR EYS Aug. 9, 1949. J TEMPLE, 5R 2,478,676

MOLDING MACHINE Filed July' 16, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 1| 24 n INVENTQR JOHA/QTEMPL 5,52.

37 36 ATTOR NEYS Patented Aug. 9, 1949 UNITED STATES des-l ce artistic Y t I I MOLDING min-e. Temple, sr., ser eants Apgili'cation my $51946, seared; 2;845:

The" present invention :rIatesfto molding apparatus, particularly of that type designed for molding hollow concr'e'tefbr cinder blocks for. building purposes.

The primary objector 'theseimprovernents is to provide a machine with iristrumentalities'for feeding materialls'from aho-npe'r to molds; compressing said materials while vibrating the displacing themo'lded biocksffrom the males and bearing o'if'ethei blocks'asimolded. 'for storingfdr't curing purposes. H k M In carrying out the foreg'oinglobjective, I have devised a series of coordinated mechanisms, automatically operated in propefcy'c'ies from a com mon source of power, so, that the lrnolding loperw tion may be completed .to' the. point of delivery or storage as-a continnohs progression of mechanical steps, thereby raeiiaatmgmgnmass'pro duction of building blocks of standardurntorm quality.

One of the important features o'fthis apparatus resides in the provision of zmold-co-n'ipression members as a part of the-feed "-hopper' to thereby directly receive-the materials to be molded and holding back further feed of said materials as the blocks are being compressed-into shape --and delivered to the carr ing-o f conveyor;

It is further, a unique feature of my invention to arrange the compressing, ejecting, and core members within the confines ofthefeed hopper,

materials tothe meld, extruaeexcess material;

Mela-ins (CL'YSQEIi) press the materials in the moId-and finally dis place the molded hiocks- Preferably"this cycle includes a vibrating operation which not only' 7 assists in compacting the material being molded,"

but also insures freedom otfiow of the materials from hopper to the. mold section thereof when the mold is openedto receive successive supplies of the material.

A further object ofniy invention is to 1o rovide a novel type. of conveyor means arrangedto coordinately function with the molding means to receive a block from the mold, lower the block to clear the mold and bear it ofi a second conveyor for finaldeliver y to the desired point of deposit. V

Other and further objects and advantages of the invention will be hereinafter set forth and the novel features thereof defined by the appended claims. r

In the drawings:

for transfer to,

Figure 1; is a venticala section-a1- view taken-on the linear-l 1-1), of Figure--4, showing themov- :v

able mold sides in open .positionr-fomningq confor pressur so that it is possible flrsttocut ofi feed of the s e;1 14 t i trac ea h, being at their elevated ti eie ter r ngf themold sides l lQWQ Q'F fee on, and the 'pallet conl mena e-e t" off and compressingpo veyor elevated;

e21 sho om l i v epksnthe iat ers. e ter i ei ee i-t .1 mat-s ra ion l v w on the line 03-4, :v--4, of Figure 5;

wf -fi. s -awtwnalvew ediw thel. 51 t.

ure 4, showi :orarn .y and t eextracter n 4;.

Figurefi is a detail view in elev bearing conveyors and'the cam g means for raising and lowerin g' the italtet conveyor;

ae i -Et e-; ;.hqrizqe leset eee -riew taken about 9 r page a was; b the fi e. H -71! oi i nm ewi in p ani Fi ure l t aqi et izlv eere eei I W the conveyor belts and chains andthe power driving means therefor.

' eeieaatataitceae Tandems-mm; which lathe-subject matter of. this inventionimay e of any- "desired size and capacityghutas hereinillustrated is designed 51170311310111 ihnllow blocks, the description of a single: meld tor which isiibelieved to s'u-ifice for an im-derstanding bfthernrrangemient; The machine. includes "the necessary structural frameworkrfor theva'rions'nnits; zand' sinc'e this may be ,of. any mm ssuch ras thatxclearly shown in the drawings, specific referenc'e 'thereto need not'be made; The :operatin'gfnnits, with'fone exception, are all driven from a'conimon Owen-device or motor- I which- 1s connected gearing; 2 -to thelarge' driving gear 3 mounted on 'one enact the main-drive shaft 4:

The hopper 0f the intilds" tition walls 8, forming part o-fti to the bottom otthe horiz ontal sub-frame 9.

Mounted centr "11y within'th hopher is a housing l0 lbl hayingrafitop'fl ljftriangular icross sectiomfiesigned toehed theiisual mater ials f the construcactuating means ugh a chain of *rnoids, extend The molding mechanism Pivotally mounted in the frame 9 and at each side of the hopper below the points I, is mounted a compressor plate l2 forming opposed mold sides which, when in open position of the mold, as shown in Figure 1, form aligned continuations of the inclined hopper sides. These plates have arcuate extensions or wings l3 to which are connected toggle links I4, the respective sets of these links being connected to their associated oscillating shaft [5. I

Referring to Figure 7, it will be seen that at each end, shafts l5 have a crank arm I6, and each pair of such arms is connected to links H, and the latter in turn are connected together by pins 18. Each of these pins carries a cam roller i9 (Figure 4) engaging in a cam track on the inner face of the associated cam wheel 2| mounted on the drive shaft .4. As the cam wheels rotate, the cam tracks cause the rollers l9 to actuate the linkage l1, thereby oscillating shafts l5 and through the toggle members M the hinged wing sections or pressure members l2 move inwardly to the position shown in Figure 2, compressing the block material around a central core or cores 22 and extruding excess material back into the hopper.

The compressed material at this point of operation rests upon the pallet 23 which in turn seats on the conveyor belts 24 directly over the table 25 beneath the upper reach of the off-bearing belts. This conveyor is shown at its uppermost position in Figures 1 and 2.

Extractor mechanism At this stage of the cycle an extractor device comes into play. This device comprises the vertically movable frame 26 including cross bars 26a extending within and across the housing in and over the mold devices. The lower ends of the walls of this frame align with the side walls of the molded blocks and contact with the top of the molded material compressed first by the members 12. In the position of the machine as shown in Figure 1, the extractor is at its highest position, supported by the lateral U-shaped or channeled arms 21 (Figure 4) welded or otherwise secured to the frame 26 and having the depending vertical extensions 28. Each of the extensions carries a roller 29 at its lower end extending into a cam channel track 30 on the outer faces of the cam wheels 2|. Vertical movement of this frame 25 is guided by the vertically arranged guides 3| at each end of the machine between which the arm extensions 28 reciprocate.

As obvious from the position of frame 26 in Figure 2, the extractor first drops onto and compresses the materials in the mold and then as the actuator cams 30 turn, it pushes the molded block or blocks downwardly and out of the molds, thus assuming the position shown in Figure 3. This movement is permitted by the simultaneous downward movement of the pallet 23, the conveyor belts 24 and the table support 25, now to be more specifically described.

Qjf-bearing conveyors Referring now to Figure 6, the table 25 is mounted under belt 24 upon the framework 32,

carrying the belt pulleys 33. On the frame 32 are mounted rollers 34 which rest upon cam wheels 35 of proper shape to give rise and fall of the conveyor as a unit, guided by the upright posts 36 with which guide sleeves 31 cooperate. The dropping of the table 25 is arranged in timed relation to the ejector action so that the complete displacement of the blocks from the mold is effected as shown in Figure 3 by the rotation of the cam wheels 35 connected to the shaft 4. When the conveyor unit reaches its extreme lowermost position, contact is made with pulley 38, continuously driven by the chain 39 and sprocket 40 from shaft 4, for a predetermined interval determined by the contour of cams 35. During this contact, the conveyor belts 24 travel in the direction of the arrow (Figure 6), carrying the pallet 23 and blocks thereon to the off -bearing chains 4|. It will be noted in Figure 8 that the conveyor unit actually comprisestwo belts and therefore the chains 4| are so spaced as to permit the movement of these belts downwardly and upwardly therebetween. The pallet, however, is sufficiently long to extend across the several chains of the chain conveyor.

These chains pass around sprockets 42 mounted in the stationary frame 43 at one end of which the sprocket shaft 44 is provided with a gear 45 meshing with a gear 46 on the short shaft 41 driven by the drive shaft 4 through the sprocket and chain connection therewith, designated 48.

This chain conveyor unit or section may be of any desired length so as to convey the blocks to the desired point of deposit. and the chains 4| thereof are driven at a somewhat higher speed than the belts 24 so that the block pallet will be removed from the path of belts 24 for the subsequent raising operation of the belt conveyor unit and deposit thereon of the next pallet.

Vibrator mechanism a firmly compacted block.

This mechanism includes the shaft 49 extendil'lg through the core supporting frame 50, and weights 5| eccentrically mounted on said shaft and a suitable motor 52. Rotation of the shaft will obviously vibrate the assembly and the mold material.

Operation The operation of this machine will be clear from the foregoing description of its various units. By properly arranging the 'camming devices, so as to move in timed relation to each other, the sequence of steps in the molding and carrying-off of the blocks will be readily automatically effected.

Of primary importance is the arrangement of the feed hopper and block mold as one unit and the use of the movable mold sides as part of the hopper walls when said sides are in their open position and as the pressure plates to compact, mold the material and cut off feeding of the latter during the molding cycle. The synchronized mechanisms for the above purpose alternately open and close the bottom of the hopper to admit new block material, vibrate said material, where desirable, during feed and mold-v ing of themeteriah entrnde; h oldncompress the residue; ifijggligl'rhgfipisjled; blwkro-nm Qqntemrde s aneeonsevz we the b o k, all; wi h. exact t min hetweeniih zvarious steps of theoperatian This machine includes i-nteietablyy H or two-section conveyor system; e t; o. beari of, the blocks, since. this ena le the; eme al or the finished blocks at a. reatee si thantt at 0f the ent afzemntynpalletzinte position under the If ie a rangement; also ables; the, continuouscmoyemenh the, second section conveyor-and remote adhere! o th i ished 1 block, while :the, -;f rst section; is some through itsvertieal metement o.: e1ea1thereieele from m lds-and establishintermittentrd ive f the first sec io by :oontaetanal-continue t hetatihedrivingypulley j Whil th specifiedetails of leonstruetionzha've. b h r hewnland d seribedstne invention s not confined -therete.;as lphanses: and alt g may he a W t ut-departing ;:fromthe pi th reof as, d fined;birthe-appended-claim I claim; a

1. In a block moldin maehirlent--t.he:elass..;tle-v scribed, a, material 'hopper into Which-material to. b molded is re eived; armoldinedenicezat the bottom thereof *havinewwall :sections; coasting with the walls of the. hoenerzwh vsaid device. is in open position-to "receive block molding material fed by the hopper to the device, said device having cut-off means movable into the path of o of ai mat rialto said meldingde ice, and means to open said molding, device to receive the molding material and to then close the mold device to reduce-its capacity and to cut-off flow of hopper containing material and compress the block forming material fed iinto the; molding device.

In a block m d n m e iieeoi the ie ee e e scribed, a material hopper, thesides of th per having movable sections attire-.bottom-t e 'lr ed to swing-fro ee nlana position relative to the sides when receiving material to be molded to vertical position to compress said material into block form, and actuating means for shifting the movable sections to and from molding position comprising a rotary cam, an oscillating shaft, and link members between said cam and shaft and between said shaft and movable sections.

3. In a block molding machine of the class described, a material hopper having shiftable block molding members at the bottom thereof forming part of the hopper walls, a block support beneath the molding members, a core member within the mouth of the hopper, an extractor device also in said hopper, and means for actuating said molding members and said extractor device in timed relation to each other to mold and compress the material into block form in the hopper and displace the molded block therefrom.

4. A molding machine as set forth in claim 3, combined with means for lowering the molded block support simultaneously with the ejection of the block by the extractor device.

5. A molding machine as set forth in claim 3, wherein the block support comprises an offbearing conveyor, combined with means for lowering the block support and conveyor simultaneously with the ejection of the block from the molding members onto the conveyor, and means for driving said conveyor and block when clear of the molding members to carry the block away from the hopper.

e se samateniahii em t. hlee ssmol inemae ia o th elass i ea scr bed,- a mat riel hap en eek m l ng m her-s a thebott m f sa d h pe and or n a. par thereqfi-aeo e memb n a d hop r, means for shifting the molding members from pe oolosed moldins si oe, ane o a r n ed above. the ore member ea or mov ng-th e t act r tovfirst. compa erial a he b ock-m ld n m mber clos and. mpress heisame, nd then continu the ex ractor mo men t d sp c t e padded. ma erial ro the bee er-,1 a pa le t r ce ve-the;- ldecl materi t an. e tebear-me em e es tor. shinin he v l omen-and, an, con e or eli ete obeta--. it. i em to the ewer nesmevement t o ev r hlee me d n i eehineoitneolassee se bed, a materia bopeea: a mold de ic a the bo om of aid bee er and ter a ns: p r-t thereon cert n of he' ll o a dv e ce-be ng, mo ab e awa 1 r ea the o. ce e. t e ma rial, Q e mold d n i el e ev b e ovv rel eac other teeo p ss he i e l. m te i a c e member n. s ap en a e s extr e rl nl eid b epe movable into the mold devicetedisplace the; mol eder l em t e beat n; an mean moun d i n the ho pe i r il e a as,lv the m te i u ng, ee o thesam to the mo ding evice and. lso hile. eld-ice th m ter -fl y 1 8-, nv a b k mo n rmeth ne' o t-t e. class d s r b d, a m tet al h ding l ep en pr ssure l lmcn t d at the bottom fi ld 'h pner nd form-me a par the eo and hav n ide m vab e tow d and away om each o her o c an e. the ca ci y. of the m d; a p llet. pport at bot om of. sai hoppe naoore em r mee n wit aid alet: support, ex ac o device-in said hoppe o co pact ng and di p ing the mold d ri f om h pres ure m ld,v 1 1: v y r uni tern bea ing ft the mol ed. mat ria t and synchronized mechanisms for alternately opening and closing the pressure mold to admit new material, and extruding excess material from the pressure mold, for compressing the residue of the material and operating the extractor and conveyor devices in timed sequence with relation to each other. r

9. A block molding machine as set forth in claim 8, combined with a vibrating frame within the hopper, vibrating elements in said vibrating frame, core elements suspended from said frame into the pressure mold area, and means for operating the vibrating frame to impart a vibrating effect to the molded material in the process of filling said pressure mold.

10. In a block molding machine of the class described, a material holding hopper, pressure molding members forming in one position a part of the hopper and in anotherposition a mold for the material fed thereto from the hopper, multiple cores within the hopper about which said material is molded into block form, an extractor device in said hopper for vertical compression of the material in the molding operation and ejecting the molded material from said mold, a pallet onto which the molded material is to be ejected, a conveyor device for supporting the pallet in position to receive the molded material, means for lowering the conveyor device upon the completion of molding, a rotating member in the path of the lowering movement of said conveyor device with which the conveyor contacts to effect drive,

combined with a vibrator unit for vibrating the core members, extractor device, and imparting vibration to the material in the hopper and the mold formed by the said molding members.

12. In a block molding machine of the class described, the combination of a material holding hopper, a molding device associated with said hopper and forming a part thereof,an endless conveyor arranged beneath the hopper and including means for supporting a pallet beneath the molding device, a cam member for effecting lowering movement of the conveyor upon completion of the molding operation, means in the path of the lowering movement of said conveyor for driving the conveyor to displace the pallet and molded material thereon, a second conveyor onto which the molded material is transferred during the lowering movement of the first conveyor, and means for moving said second conveyor at a speed in excess of the movement of the first conveyor.

13. In a molding machine of the class described, amaterial holding hopper having converging sides terminating in movable molding pressure plates, pivot means for said pressure plates, said plates having cut-off means for cutting off the flow of material during the molding operation by said pressure plates, means for alternately shifting the pressure plates inwardly and outwardly to compress blocks of the molding material and release the same, a vertically movable extractor device within said hopper, means for moving the extractor device upwardly and downwardly to compress the blocks and eject the same from the mold members, a core member within the hopper, a housing in said hopper within which the extractor device and core member are mounted, off-bearing conveyor means in-' cluding' a vertically movable belt conveyor section for receiving a pallet and supporting the blocks during the molding operation and conveying the blocks after molding away from the hopper, a second section for receiving the molded block from the first section incident to the lowering movement of the first section, and means for activating the first section at a point in the lowering movement of the same.

14. In a block molding machine of the class described, the combination of a material holding hopper, a pressure mold device at the bottom of said hopper and forming a part thereof, an extractor device within the hopper for vertical movement to compress the molding material during the molding operation and to eject the molded blocks after the molding operation, off-bearing conveyor means for receiving and holding pallets to receive the molded blocks from the hopper and to convey said blocks after molding away from the hopper, a second conveyor means for said oil-bearing of the molded blocks, and common actuating means for the pressure mold device, the extractor and the said conveyors.

15. A molding machine as set forth in claim 14, wherein the actuating means includes synchronized cams mounted upon a single drive shaft and rollers cooperating with said cams.

JOHN C. TEMPLE, SR.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

